Railway-car end.



III. COOPER. RAILWAY CAR END. APPLICATION \FILEIJV IIILI/ II. I9I4.

Patented Dec. 19, 1916.

ooo`| OOO Lfd-nes .Mig

fr it nasa w i JAMES J'. COOPER, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN CAR AND FOUNDRY COMPANY, OF yST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

' RAILWAY-can END.'

`specification of Letters Patent. pmmd De@ 19, 191g,

Application filed July 11, 1914.-. Seria-11%. 850,463.

To all whom t may concern: v

Be it known 'that I, JAMES J. COOPER, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented a certain new vand useful Improvement in Railway-Car Ends, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specicatiom in whichf Figure 1 is an elevational view of a portion of a car end of my improved construction. Fig. 2 is an end elevational view of a modified form of the car end. Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section taken approximately on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig.4 is a detail section similar 'to Fig. 3 and showing a modified construction.

My invention relates to reinforced sheet metal car ends of the general type disclosed and claimed in my copending application onY railway car end, filed November 6, 1913, Serial No. 7 919,516.

In railwaycars and particularly those designed for and used in the transportation of freight, the end portions of the car body and particularly the endv walls are subjected to strains and stresses resulting from service shocks and vibrations, and also by reason of the sudden starting and stopping of the cars and the shifting of the load or contents of the cars while the latter are in transit.

rlhe principal object of my invention is to constructa car end from a plurality of sections of material, preferably sheet metal,

. either plain or corrugated,- which sections are arranged so that the joints between them are horizontally disposed, and to combine with the meeting edges of said sections of j material, yjoint members, preferably commercially rolled metal shapes, thereby providing a very stable yet comparatively simv ple, inexpensive car end which can be readily combined with an ordinary carI underframe and superstructure, and which end by virtue of its transversely disposed reinforcement which is in the nature of a truss, will be effective t0 a high degree in resisting such strains and stresses as may result from shifting loads, service shocks and vibrations or collisions. Y U

Further objects of my invention are to arrange the overlapping edges of two sections of the car end and combine the joint 'members therewith so as to produce a rain and dust proof joint, and further to offset the overlapping edges, relative to the plane occupied by the main body portions of the sections so that the rivet heads on the interior of the end, will be inset with respect to the inner face of said endthe'reby providing a construction which complies with the government regulations relating to cars utilized for the transportation of explosives. p

With the foregoing and other objects in View, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

The Car end-illustrated in rig. 1 is made mediate'panels or sections are bent slightly.v

so as to form portions 13 which are slightly, r offsetwith respect to the body portions of said panels or sections, and when the latter are properly assembled, the offset portions 13 are positioned'immediately inside or beneath the offset portions 12, thereby forming overlapping edges which are slightly spaced apart.

Positioned between said overlappingl edges is the upwardly projecting flange of a Z-bar 14. rlhe central web of this Z-bar projects Aoutwardly beneath the lower edge of the Oset portion 12,- thereby forming a horizontally disposed reinforcing member which extends from one side of the end to the other.

f Seated in the overlapping offset portions *'12- and 13 and the interposed flange of the member 14 are rivets 15 or like fastening devices, the heads on the inner ends of which are inset with respect to the inner face of the end.

By virtue of such construction, it will be impossible for a box or package of explosives when shifted suddenly within the car to strike against the projecting head of a bolt or rivet, and thus develop suflicientimpact to set off' or effect a discharge of the explosives. Likewise, it will be impossible for a rivet or bolt when' subjected to a blow from the exterior of the car to perform the functions of a hammer and transmit to a box or package of explosives positioned against the inner face of the car end, sufficient impact to effect a discharge of said explosives.

Inasmuch as the offset edge 12 overlaps the corresponding edge 13, a rain and dust proof joint is provided between the meeting edges of two sections or panels, and by combining a commercially rolled member with the overlapping joints, a transversely disposed reinforcing and strengthening structure is provided in the nature 'of a truss, withthe upper marginal portion of the lower section as a compression member, the lower marginal portion of the upper section as a tension member, and the bar member as a strut, which serves to materially reinforce and strengthen the car end against all internally or externally applied shocks or blows and all servicestrains and vibrations.

In Fig.' 2 the car end is shown as being provided with a single horizontally disposed reinforcement, the same being arranged approximately midway between the upper and lower edges of said end, and where such construction is employed, it may be found desirable to corrugate the two sheets or panels of which the end is formed. (See In the modification shown in Fig. 4, the flanged reinforcing member which is combined with the overlapping edges of the secv Fig. 2'.)

Vtions or panels takes the form of an angle.

In the construction of car ends, the distance at which the brake shaft may be positioned with respect to the face of the end is limited owing to the fact thatthevrules of the Interstate Commerce Commission provide that the outside edge of the brake wheel shall be no less than four inches from a vertical plane parallel with the end of the car and passing through the inside face of knuckle when closed with the coupler horn against the buffer block or endsill. Thus, in the construction of car ends, it is neceslSary that the reinforcing members thereof clear the brake shaft, and this clearance has heretofore been obtained by reducing the sizey of the reinforcing members, or the length of the car over the dead blocks has been materially increased.

In my improved construction, the attaching portion of the reinforcing member is positioned between the overlapping edges of the-sheets of which the end is formed, thereby permittingthe brake shaft to be moved correspondingly nearer to the car end, and consequently, the length of the car over the buffer blocks is correspondingly shortened.

A car end of my improved construction can be easily and cheaply manufacturedis very strong and rigid, by reason of its horizontally disposed reinforcements, and as lthe inner fa-ce of the end is perfectly flat and devoid of projections, cars equipped with said ends are particularly adapted for service in the transportation of explosives.

It will be readily understood that minor changes in the size, form and construction of the various parts of my improved car end may be made and substituted for those herein shown and described, without departing from the spirit of my invention, the scope of which is set forth in the appended claims.

I claim: j

l. In a railway car end, a pair of sheet metal plates having overlapping edges, which are offset with respect to the plane occupied by the body portions of said plates, and a reinforcing joint member interposed between and fixed to said overlapping edges.

2.In a railway car end, a pair of sheet metal plates having overlapping edges, which vare offset with respect tothe plane occupied by the body portions 'of said plates, and a reinforcing joint member having a part interposed between and fixed to said overlapping edges, and a part projecting outwardly from said edges.

3. In a railway car end, a pair of sheet metal plates having overlappinor edges which are offset with respect to the plane occupied by the body portions of said plates, and a flanged reinforcing joint member combined with said -plates with one of its fianges positimed between and fixed to said overlapping e ges. y

4., In a car end, a pair of sections of sheet metal, the overlapping edges of which are bent so as to occupy parallel vertical planes which are offset with respect to the plane occupied by the body portions of said sections, and a reinforcing joint member having a part positioned between and fixed to sald overlapping offset edges.

5.- In a car end, a plurality of sections of sheet metal, the lower edge of each of which sections is offset and overlaps the offset upper edge of the next adjacent section, anda reinforcing joint member having a part positioned between and fixed to said overlapping ofiset edges. Y

6. In a car end, a pair of sections of sheetl metal forming the end wall, the lower edge of the upper section being offset from the plane ofthe section and overlapping the upper edge of the lower section, and a reinforcmg joint member having a part positioned between and fixed t`o said overlapping edges and a horizontally extending portion forming a longitudinal sti'ening reinforcement for the sections.

7. In a car end, a pairI of sheet metal sections having their meeting edges bent to 4form offset vertically disposed x portions whichoverlap each other, and a reinforcing member having a part positioned between and xed to said overlapping portions.

'8. In a car end, a pair of sheet metal sections having their meeting edges bent to form' oset vertically disposed portions which overlap each other, and a reinforcing member havln a part positioned between and fixed to sald overlapping portions, and a horizontally disposed outwardlyT projecting part.

9. In a car end, two sections forming wall portions, said sections having their meeting edges relatively o'set and overlapping, a

' transverse reinforcing member having a portion disposed. between the overlapped edges of the sections and securing means conjoining said reinforcing member and sections. 10. In a car end, two juxtaposed sections of 'sheet metal forming end wall portions, said sections having their adjacent margins overlapping and relatively o'set horizontally so that they form respectively compression and tension membersand a reinforcing member disposed intermediate the offset margins and conjoined thereto and acting as a strut intermediate the compression and tension members. -Y

In testimony whereof I hereunto aix my signature, in the presence of twovwitnesses, this 22nd day of June, 1914.

' JAMES J. COGPER.

Witnesses: Y

PAUL M. BEARD, J om: M. ROHLFING. 

